Toast of the Town: Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo Puyat

The rain is pouring in torrents. It’s a bleak Saturday afternoon, and after an extremely hectic work week, it is clear Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo Puyat would much rather be in bed. But she had committed to attending the launch of ikotMNL and she is honoring that commitment.

The cabinet secretary arrives at the Light Rail Transit’s Central Station in Manila clad in a T-shirt, jeans, sneakers, and a rain jacket, her smile lighting up the dreary venue. She usually sleeps in on Saturdays, she says, to make up for late work nights that usually drag into early mornings during the week, but today she makes an exception.

ikotMNL is a project which excites her, introducing local and foreign tourists to the heart of Manila. The privately run Light Rail Metro Corporation (LRMC) offers a one-day pass for unlimited rides on Line 1 of the LRT for just P99 (it usually costs P20 per ride). Working with operators such as Ivan Man Dy of Old Manila Walks and Tralulu, among others, iKotMNL is a convenient, traffic-free way to see some of the best sights in the city, highlighting attractions that are within walking distance of the LRT’s 20 stations from Baclaran to Monumento.

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Berna Romulo Puyat during the launch of ikotMNL, walking tour packages in partnership with the LRT-1 line. PHOTO: IAN SANTOS

“I think it’s a great idea,” says Berna. “There are so many beautiful places to see right here in Manila. The LRT makes everything more accessible. Have you been to the Museum of Natural History? The architecture is mind blowing and the exhibits are amazing.”

After today’s launch festivities, we are off to Binondo, taking the LRT to Carriedo station, after which we take an eTrike (an electric-powered tricycle. “No gas, no oil, no noise, no smoke,” says its ad.) because of the rain. We are with Juan Alfonso, president and chief executive officer of the privately run Light Rail Manila Corp. that runs the LRT-1, his wife, former Town & Country cover girl Vic Vic Tambunting, and their daughter, Ines, as we put-put-put through the flooding streets.

“I love visiting different parts of the country in jeepneys and tricycles. Remember Tacloban?” asks Berna, as we crouch in the low-ceilinged eTrike. She reminisces about our trip with her to Tacloban back in 2014, accompanying her as she traveled through the storm-ravaged city to commiserate with the farmers, and yet praise their resilience and encourage them to keep on planting food to sustain their families.

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“It’s been four years since Town & Country took a chance and put me on your cover. At that time, agriculture wasn’t “in” yet. I’m sure people were wondering why you put me on the cover when no one else had before, but you took a chance on me,” says the self-deprecating Berna. “Since then, more and more people have been giving importance to our farmers and to the agriculture sector. Chefs and consumers want to buy directly from our farmers. People want to support local and buy our local ingredients. After you, many others wanted to feature me and put the spotlight on the Department of Agriculture. I remember that, and I am grateful. Thank you,” she says.

Berna is currently the darling of the media and the talk of the town. Only yesterday, her face took up practically half the front page of a daily newspaper. Her posts on social media garner thousands of likes, the same numbers as a so-called millennial influencer.

Her own children, Maia and Vito, are reluctant influencers as well. Every time Vito makes an appearance on social media, he causes palpitations in many young girls’ hearts. He recently graduated with the highest honors in Psychology from Newcastle University in the United Kingdom, and is looking to pursue further studies in neuroscience. Maia graduated from Ateneo with a degree in Psychology last year, and is a freelance writer while working for a holding company.

The two have grown up a lot since that feature in 2014, when they were all still massively hurting after the sudden death of their father, Dave Puyat, after he collapsed from a heart attack on the football field in 2010.

I got very sad when I was appointed to the Department of Tourism because I know how proud and supportive Dave would have been. I thought about how he should have been by my side during my confirmation by the Commission on Appointments and my oath taking.

Berna says that while time has eased a lot of the pain, she especially misses Dave during life’s most important moments.

“I always tear up whenever there are milestones in our lives: the confirmation of the kids, when they graduated from high school and college, and now, this. I got very sad when I was appointed to the Department of Tourism because I know how proud and supportive Dave would have been. I thought about how he should have been by my side during my confirmation by the Commission on Appointments and my oath taking. It was such a special time.”

Berna hit the ground running. She says she is on call practically 24 hours a day, with her “boss” (a.k.a. President Rodrigo Duterte whom she still calls “Mayor” since they’ve been friends for years) calling her at all hours of the day or night asking for updates on certain situations. Cabinet meetings usually start at 5 pm and run into the wee hours of the morning.

“It’s nothing new. I’m used to it,” says Berna, who first entered government as a deputy cabinet secretary under the office of the President in 2005, during the term of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. “Prior to that, I was a consultant with the Presidential Management Staff. I started from the bottom. Under the PMS, we would work 24/7 and even sit on the floor on cargo planes to get to where we wanted to go. I was never given any special treatment by my colleagues or anyone, even if my father was Foreign Affairs Secretary. I learned the value and importance of being a regular staffer.”

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“Being in government, especially in the Department of Agriculture (DA) later on, meant I had work 24/7 even on holidays and during typhoons. It was normal to expect calls from my boss even at 3 in the morning to take down notes. He said it was because he might forget those thoughts when he woke up. One year he called for a meeting on New Year’s Day because there was just so much work to be done.”

But Berna believes it was her history of strenuous government work that prepared her for her work as Tourism Secretary.

“I’ve matured a lot over the years. My new job is such a big one that I am grateful for the years of government experience that prepared me for it,” she says. “Being in the Department of Agriculture for close to 12 years made me familiar with the different process, with the government bureaucracy, what works and what doesn’t, what is legal, how things should be done. Even when I was in the DA I had two lawyers check every document I signed. And I made frequent appointments with our resident auditor from the Commission on Audit to guide me in government procedures.”

She says she is fortunate her children understand the fact that her new responsibilities keep her away from home a lot.

“My kids still live with me, and but they already have lives of their own,” says Berna. My new job came at the right time since my kids are all grown up. I’ve also been so busy with work that I haven’t had the time to really be with them except for a few Sunday lunches. They still text or call so I know where they are but basically I’m like an empty nester.”

“I used to think a woman could have everything, that it was possible,” she says. “But now I know it’s not. I can’t have everything. I admit my personal life is suffering, I have no time for myself, but I really love what I do. I’m married to my job. I want to do it. How often does one get an opportunity to serve the nation in this way?”

We arrive at our destination, Sincerity Café on Yuchengco Street, one of the oldest restaurants in Binondo. To the delight of its second-generation owners, Berna digs into their offerings with gusto: fried chicken seasoned with herbs and spices, crisp on the outside, juicy within, which our guide says, keeps visitors coming back for more, tasty kikiam, and an oyster omelet.

Sincerity Cafe in Binondo, one of the stops during the tour. PHOTO: IAN SANTOS

Berna is a big fan of food in all of its incarnations, as will be noticed on her personal Facebook and Instagram pages, where she regularly posts about her favorite local produce and products.

As Undersecretary, I loved to promote anything and everything Filipino. In my new job, I not only get to promote our food but the whole country as well

As DA Undersecretary, Berna introduced a project, TienDA with Ayala Malls where they brought different farmers to malls in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao to sell their fresh produce at directly to consumers farm gate prices, cutting out the need for middlemen. She also organized a Tienda Para sa mga Bayani series which brought farmers to soldier camps.

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“As Undersecretary, I loved to promote anything and everything Filipino. In my new job, I not only get to promote our food but the whole country as well,” she says excitedly.

At our next stop, the brand new Eng Bee Tin, an empire built by ube hopia, Berna gamely dances with the lion dancers the owner has brought in for her visit. He has built the cleanest restrooms in Binondo, he tells her proudly, to be of service to tourists and other visitors.

ikotMNL makes a stop at Eng Bee Tin. PHOTO: IAN SANTOS

Over steaming bowls of beef tendon, Berna updates us on the progress of the rehabilitation of Boracay, one of the Philippines’ most popular tourist destinations. “The government is trying its best to bring back the Boracay we knew while we were growing up,” she says. “We’re trying to bring back paradise.”

She says the government has been cleaning up the beaches, setting up sewage treatment plants, and widening the roads. And no, she says, there are no casinos being built, foreign or otherwise.

“I just put myself in the shoes of the visitors to Boracay. I ask myself, ‘would I want my young daughter to go on vacation to an island where there are casinos?’ No way,” she says. “I’m glad the President and I agree on that. He has said, ‘No casinos on Boracay. Not on my watch. Not during my term. No casinos.’”

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We cut the tour short due to the sustained rains and flooding in different parts of the city. Later, close to midnight, we find out that Berna has just gotten home, about five hours after she left us.

Yet the effervescent Tourist Secretary is unfazed.

“Wasn’t that fun?” she asks. “Let’s plan on doing it again soon, the whole food tour. I can’t wait.”